Commutator-short-circuiting device.



L. H. THULLEN COMMUTAIOR SHORT CIRGUITING DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED APRJ. 1910,

1,007,902. Patented Nov. 7,-1911.

' ZSHEETS-SHBETL W 1 2 1 5 r mun J A /5 III I 9 mmssszs: mnon l/l/fiz g or kW 4 E a k nmmvers UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE? LOUIS HENRY THULLEN, OF CINCINNATI, OHIO. ASSIGNOR TO THE TRIUMPH ELECTRIC COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF OHIO.

OOML IUTATOILSHORT-CIRGUITIN G DEVICE.

Specification, Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 7, 191i.

Application filed April 1, 1910. Serial 10.552305.

.citizen of the United States, residing at.

iincinnati, in the county of Hamilton and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in commutator- Short-Circuiting Devices, of which the foi lowing is a full, clear, and exact specificit tlon.

This invention relates tUdHGflHH for electrically connecting together segments of n commutator.

The present invention, while up )licalile to numerous uses, is particularly weil adapted for use in connection with the operation of sin 10 phase alternating current niotors.

i s is well known to persons skilled in the art, motors operated by single phase alternating currents will not start from rest when conuerted to operate as induction or synchronous motors. For this reason single phase alternating current motors are frl. quently supplied with comujutators, wherey the motor can be made to operate as it commutator type motor in starting, while when the motor has been brought up to approximate speed the conductors eonnec ed with the commutator have their circuits-it ocally closed, or shorbcircuited, by connect- In? together segments of the commutator, or 0t lerwise, so that the motor may operate as an induction motor.

Various devices have been provided which are adapt-ed to locally close, or short-circuit, the windings connected to the commutator when 21 certain speed has been reached, and it is the general objectof the present inven tion to provide improved apparatus of on character describe:

Among the specific objects of the harem tion may be mentioned,th proteetion of the connecting or short circnitin means from liability to dere'ngement or fireakage by reason of coming intocontaot with forelgn bodies, and iliso to preserve the connectingmeans from the deleterious infinences of oil dust, ,dirt orda'thpness, which might interiere with its p oper operation.

Othr objects of the invetntion will appear hereinafter. i The invention. cur'i be liest described in comfiiction with the accontipahying drawings, which illustrate the invention, md of whieiii Fimre 1 is a view showing in longitudi the application of the invention thereto, the

not section a commutator and the improtedconnecting means mounted. XIII-11h armature or rotor shaft. -Inasmuc as the parts 7 are symmetrical about the shaft, but onehalf of the commutator structure and con- 60, necting means is. shown. In this figure the connecting means is shown in'positlon such that the segments of the cmnmutator are not connected. Fig. 2 is a View like Fig. 1, except that the connecting means is shown in position such that the segments of the commutator are electrically cohort-ted. Fig. 3 is anelevation looking in thedirection of the arrow in Fig. 1, of a segment of the tumbler carriage, some of the tumblers being shown in position, and of those shown some are in end view and others-in section, it being understood that the carriage is circular and symmetrical about the shaft. Fig. 4 is a side View of a tumbler. Fig. 5 is an end view thereof, and Fig. 6 is a longitudinal section tiinough a motor to which the resent invention is applied, but a fragment f the motor showlnonly suflicient to show remainder of the motor being broken away. Referring tothe drawings, upon the armature or rotor shaft 1 is mounted a commutator which com arises conducting contacts or segmentsam su' 'iporting and clamping means therefor. Tieso segments, as 2,

are arranged side by side in a well known -manner sons to form a cylinder about the shaft 1. These segments are insulated from each other and also from clam ing rings 3 and 4, which are drawn toge er by bolts or screws, as 5, so nstoclamp the segments "'gether m a well known manner.

t will be understood that upon the shaft l. is mounted-a suitahle armature winding which may be connected with the commutatorsegments 2 in any of the ways. well known in the art, An end of this winding is indicated in Fi 6 at NY.

The ring renter radial width than 1pc the ring 4. Itwil he noted that; a space is formed between the commutator segments and the shin-ft, the clamping ringfi fitting. upon the shaft, supporting the commutator structure Zand closing one end of, this chain.-

her. The ring?! is secured} gainst, turning upon theshn by t the Meaxisegitt the other 'e'nd'of tini iii-hi8; I piatefi fitting upon t I trnfigfre thereon. This annuh pilt tj'itttufljilm ing fit at its periphery with the interionof the clamping ring 4 and 18 rovlded with an annular lip 7, which over ups the inner edge of the ring 4. Also, the plate theme 5 one or more PI'OJGClZlOIlS, as 8, from its inner lace for a purpose as will llGI'BlIlfl.f l8l' appear. To look the annular plate 6 1n position a collar 9 is threaded upon the shaft 1 and may be fixed in any position of ad ust- 1o ment ban suitable means, as a set screw 10. Tli e p ate 6 having been adjust d as desired, it may be locked in screwin the collar 9 against it, when it will beorced against the clampin ring 4, and the plate 6 will thus be secure y bound in position between the ring 4 and the collar 9. To facilitate the turning of the plate 6,

position by it may be provided with any suitable con-' figuration to cofiper'atewith a tool, and 111 the present instance is shown as provided with one or more sockets or recesses ll, within which the prongs of a turning tool ,beinserted.

ill the cham r within the commutator,

as as described, is on dmeans for alternately oonnect' g nd disconnectin the commutatorae ents. This means wi now be described.', readed u on the shaft is a collar 12, which is as 13,- ior the reception of the projections 8.

' The collar 12 isthus held in a substantially fixed relation to the late 6, turning there- .awith and' bein fixed in. position thereby. Bearing upon file shaf '1 and upon the colhr 12 1s a tumbler canlage 14, and. a spring 15 is interposed between this carriage and the collar 12. The JJeripher-y of the tumblercarriage is divide into compartn' entsby means of radiallyprojecting walls 16, and within each of. thesecompartments is laid one or more of the tumblers, 17. These tum-' blers are L-shzlped, one of the legs 18 beingheavier than c other, while the other leg 19 has one end rounded, as shown, so as to 48 turn easily ,about that end, and is provided with a-depression 20 upon its outer side. A groove 21 extending circumferentiall about the carriage 14 accommodates the l e gs 18 of the tumblers. 1A cap, 22 overlaps the 5!) rounded end of the legs 19so as to prevent the.same from, flying outwardly, and this cap is secured to the tumbler carria e by any suitable means, such, for examp e, as

screws 28, which take partly into the car- 65 riu 14 and partly into. the cap'22. refcra ly, the carriage Hand the cap 22 are ma eof cast brass, and the tumblers are formed from" sheet copper. 1 From the inner face f the ring 3 extend one or more projections, as 24, which extend within holes 25 in the tumbler carriage so tlrat radial. movement of the carriage .with relation cannot take place, but longitu inal movewent along the shaft is permitted.

rovi ed with recesses,

to the clam ing ring 3 -The inner edges of the commutator segments are' rov cledwith inclined surfaces, as 26, whic are substantially continuations of a similar inclined surface 27 upon the ring 3, and'with this incli'ncd surface 27 and the surfaces 26 the tumblers are adapted to engage in the operation of the apparatus, as will now be set forth.

When the shaft is at rest or running at a low speed, the s ring 15 resses the tumbler carriage to the' eft and t 1e parts will be in the position as shown in Fig. 1. When a certain speed has becnreached, the legs 18 of the tumblers will fly outwardly under the action of. centrifugal force, the tumblers turning about the rounded ends of the legs 19. The tumblers will first come against the inclined surface 27, and as the centrifugal force increases with the speed, there will be" produced a wedging action which will produce a thrust )Ull the tumbler carrying means. This thrust acting against the spring 15 will cause the tumbler carriage to be moved to the right, and as .this action continues the ends of the tumblers will travel along the incline formed by the surfaces 27 and 26 (thereby forming a Wiping contact), until they reach the position as shown in Fig. 2, when they will be in contact with the commutator segments and those segments will be electrically connected together or short-circuited through the tumblers and the tumbler carrying means. As the speed, and therefore the ccntrifu al force, decreases, the spring lfiw'ill force file tumbler carriage to. the left and the tumblers traveling in the opposite direction along the inclined surfaces 26 and 27 will pass out of contact with the commutator se cuts and assume the positions as shown in ig. 1L

Inasmuch as the tumblers are loosely "Jlaced in their carrying means, they are ing, and it is an important feature that the tumblers are divided into groups of one or more, which are separated "by walls on the carriage, asothrwise looseness and freedom overand piling uponea'ch other.

The depressions 20 in the tops of the tumblers prevent restriction of movement by coming in vcon-tact with the edge of the cap 22, and the edge oftliis cap may be beveled,

as shown, for the same purpose.

Itrwill be observed that the commutator s'hort-circuiting means here shown; is inclosed in a practically'tight chamber :within the commutator structure so that it is prevented from damage by comi in contact with foreign bodies, and it is a so protected from oil, ustfdirt, etc. It'will also be observed that the short-circuiting means is automatic in its operation, being operated by centrifugal force, which increases as the reeto respond promptly to the forces act-- of operation of the tumblers could not be obtained without danger of their falling 1 btutcen said segments in a closed speed of rotation increases. Obviously, that speed of rotation at which the tumblers will move outwardly and connect the commutator segments will de adjusting the operation of the short-circuiting means from the exterior of the chamber so that it is unnecessary to open this chamber to efi'ect the desired ad ustment. The adjustment is etfected as follows: It has been before set forth that the annular plate 6 may be turned about the shaft in any suitable manner and may be locked in position by means of the locking collar As has also been before noted. the collar 12 turns with the plate ti. .'\ccordiug, therefore, to the direction in which the plate (3 is turned, the collar 12 will be advanced toward or retracted from the sprin r 15 along the shaft by reason of its screw-t ireaded engagement therewith, the engagement between the plate 6 and collar 12 being such as to permit longitudinal movement while preventing relative motion of rotation.

W'hile the invention has been illustrated in what is considered its best application, it may be embodied in other structures without departing from its spirit. The invention, therefore, is not limited to the'structure shownin the drawings.

What- I claim is:

1. The combination with a rotatable shaft 01 a commutator structure thereon comprising segmentstudinally of said shaft and clamping sai segm nts together. means adapted to alter nately connect and disconnect segments of -a ul commutator and comprising a plurality ot centrifugally operated tumblers each piv vied at one end and having a portion adapt.- ed to com act with a commutator segment, thc pivot and contact )ortion being longit inally displaced. said means being located and said shaft, the longitudinal limits of saidmeans being within the outer longitudinal edges of said clamps, said structure having an inclined face located between said clamps and adapted to be engaged by said means.

i 2. The combination with a commutator structure of adjustable means adapted to alternately connect and disconnect segments of the (-ouunutator, said means being located chamber within said structure, ad usting means for said connecting and disconnecting means and n t-ans locatedin tlte end upon the tension of tlie spring 15. rovis1on is made. for adjusting the tension of this spring and so and clamps displaced longif'k walls of said chamber and accessible from the exterior of said chamber when it is closed for operatin said adjusting means.

3. The combination with the segments of a commutator of clamping and supporting means therefor, said segments being insulated from each other and from the clamp ing and supporting means, a rotatable shaft; upon which the commutator structure is mounted, adjustable means for alternately connecting and disconnecting segments of the commutator,said last mentioned means being mounted between the said segments and said shaft, means for adjusting the said connecting and disconnecting means, and a rotatable plate, closing one end of the chamber in \\lll(ll th said connecting and disconuectin means iis mounted and engaging with the said adjusting means to adjust the same as said plate is rotated.

4. The combination with the segments of a connnutator of clamping and supporting means therefor, said segments being insulated from each other and from the clampingand supporting means, a rotatable shaft upon which the commutator structure is mounted, adjustable eentrifugally operated means for alternately connecting a 1d disconnecting segmer ts of the commutator, said last mentioned .means being mounted between the said segments and said shaft, means for adjusting the said centrifugally operated means, and a rotatable plate closing one end of the chamber in which the said centrifugally operated means is mounted and engaging with the said adjusting means to adjust. the same as said plate is rotated.

5. The combination with a rotatable shaft of a commutator structure thereon comprising segments and clamps displaced longitudinally of said shaft and clamping said segments together, means adapted to alternately connect and disconnect segments of said commutator and comprising a plurality of tumbiersmich pivoted at one end and having a portion adapted to contact with a commutator segment, the pivot and contact portions being. longitudinally displaced, said structure having an inclined face located between said clamps and adapted to be engaged by said means.

In testimony whereof I aflix my ture, in presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS l-IENRY 'll-l'ULLEN;

G. I I. LIEHEL, (hauu'uscn lmcn.

signa- 

